Letter from Arthur Raymond to the Secretary to the President with a Reply from Joseph Short

filed 4-22-52 101-L April 21, 1952 Dear Mr. Raymond: I have your letter of April seventeenth asking about the meaning of the Twenty-second Amendment of the Constitution. While I am not a legal authority, I think the answers to your questions are plainly stated in the Amendment itself. First, with regard to President Truman - the Amendment clearly states that "This article shall not apply to any person holding the office of President when this article was proposed by the Congress." Obviously this means that there is no limitation whatsoever regarding Mr. Truman. Your second question has to do with the possibility of another person serving more than two terms non-consecutively. Again the wording of the Amendment bars this possibility. The Amendment does not mention consecutive terms. Rather it says, "No person shall be elected to the office of President more than twice." Sincerely yours, JOSEPH SHORT Secretary to the President Mr. Arthur Raymond, NEW YORK WORLD-TELEGRAM, X144 X 125 Barclay Street, New York 15, N.Y. IP/gz AND